---

In the end, I accepted the team leader’s request.

The team leader explained the operation to apprehend the spy suspect, Giada Bianchi.

In fact, it was more akin to covert work than a straightforward operation.

To put it precisely,

“Are you aware that counterintelligence can be categorized into two types?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s get to the point quickly.”

It was a counterintelligence operation.

Episode 3 – A Fantastic Vacation

Counterintelligence.

The term refers to actions taken to counter and neutralize the intelligence activities of spies and foreign intelligence agencies.

If you were to ask someone what counterintelligence is, nine times out of ten, you would receive the answer: “spying investigations.”

That’s not entirely wrong.

But it’s a half-baked answer.

Different scholars, such as Kent, Ransom, Gottson, Shulsky, Richelson, and Holt, have varied views on counterintelligence.

And countries like the USA, UK, France, and China have their interpretations of what counterintelligence means, with some, like the Soviet Union, consolidating it into a single concept.

This discrepancy in definitions among countries and scholars stems from counterintelligence being regarded as a realm shrouded in mystery, often treated like a secret within intelligence agencies themselves, where even agents have limited knowledge unless they are assigned to that field.

For that reason, the general public tends to perceive counterintelligence merely as “the apprehension of spies.”

But what kind of age are we living in in the 21st century?

It is the age of information and globalization.

A time when a Chinese person could introduce Tiananmen Square beyond the Great Firewall and typical kids in the East could throw shade at their counterparts on the other side of the Earth.

Highly developed science and technology have turned impossibilities into possibilities, opening doors to the world.

With the activation of transportation, the expansion of international trade markets, job creation via outsourcing, the emergence of NGOs and multinational corporations, the opening of foreign exchange markets, inter-state cooperation, diversified diplomacy, diminished threats of total war, and explosive growth in cultural industries, countless citizens of the global village benefited from the fruits of scientific advancement, including those pesky rats lurking throughout the globe.

Thus,

the rise of new terrorism,

the organizational structure of terrorist groups,

self-sustained terrorism,

transnational crime syndicates,

leaks of advanced scientific technology,

large-scale hacking and leaks of information, etc.

New forms of threats emerged, combined with various political, diplomatic, military, economic, cultural, technological, energy, resource-related, and geographical issues erupting in various parts of the world.

Intelligence agencies that used to sneakily gather secrets from other countries now had to deal not only with foreign intelligence agencies but also with criminal organizations, terrorist groups, radical civilian organizations, and multinational corporations targeting markets and technology.

CIA, who were grappling with the KGB, now needed to take down terrorists hiding in the desert, while Russia’s intelligence agencies, successors of the KGB, had to confront terrorists from former Soviet satellite states.

Countries that once opposed each other due to ideological differences started backstabbing each other. France sent economic spies to the US, while Germany, Japan, Israel, and even South Korea unleashed industrial spies against America.

It wasn’t a sudden turn among free world countries against the US.

It was just the world that had become.

But what kind of organization is an intelligence agency?

One that stages coups in South America and the Middle East, intervenes in war-torn countries to suck out their resources, and steals foreign nuclear technology to create their own nuclear arsenal.

Intelligence agencies had been through decades of the Cold War, accumulating considerable know-how over the years.

National intelligence agencies redefined their concepts of national security and the roles and activities of intelligence agencies to keep up with the changing times.

Globalization and informatization changed the security landscape, forcing intelligence agencies to break from traditional paradigms and establish new concepts.

Thus emerged a more refined, meticulous, and lethal form of counterintelligence strategy.

What had been passive counterintelligence, represented by security, evolved into active counter espionage activities.

The new counterintelligence strategies added a layer of sophistication to the raw struggle of the past. Counterintelligence now didn’t just stop at catching spies.

Counterintelligence investigations, intelligence collection, counterintelligence analysis, counterintelligence operations.

Detection of enemy activities through information agents, thorough analysis and understanding of them, predicting actions by syncing thoughts and ideologies, capturing spies, and using intimidation and persuasion to turn them into double agents—all while disrupting the enemy’s intelligence network.

This aggressive and proactive form of counterintelligence defined the new concept of counterintelligence as recognized by today’s intelligence agencies.

And the same goes for this side of the intelligence world too.

Now, how do you catch the industrial spy who disguised themselves to infiltrate the Advanced Military Magic Research Institute under the orders of the Magic Tower’s intelligence department?

In response, the team leader held up two fingers.

“The Military Intelligence Agency broadly categorizes counterintelligence into two concepts.”

Passive and defensive forms of security, and active and offensive forms of counter-espionage activities.

“Passive counterintelligence and active counterintelligence. You’ve probably heard of them.”

“The former is a preventive measure, while the latter is a reactive measure. Isn’t intelligence collection, counterintelligence investigation, counterintelligence analysis, counterintelligence operations, the most direct means of response?”

“That’s right.”

The team leader nodded in agreement.

“While criminal investigations are the most commonly known counterintelligence activities, in practice, operations are more often conducted after investigative processes or legal actions.”

Generally, active counterintelligence takes on a very aggressive nature.

If counterintelligence investigations target official (White) and unofficial (Black) disguise agents, counterintelligence operations aim at the foreign intelligence agency behind the field agents.

There are various types.

Sometimes, they employ information agents to gather intelligence, other times they spread false information to deceive the enemy. There are even instances where spies are turned into double agents to siphon off information or they infiltrate the intelligence agency by feigning defection.

Though labeled ‘counterintelligence’ operations, they are practically the same as overseas operations.

“Counterintelligence operations and covert operations share many similarities. For one, they both have elements like operatives, operational agents, budgets, and objectives, and as time goes by, their goals shift from abstract to concrete.”

Since the fundamental framework is the same, understanding shouldn’t be a problem.

I decided to ask a more productive question.

“So, what is the objective of this operation?”

“The goal is to uncover the entity of the organization infiltrating the research institute and bring the key operatives to justice.”

Gather all the spies and put them on trial, it seems.

The operation type is likely intelligence collection. Most overseas operations consist of intelligence collection anyway.

“To proceed with legal action, evidence must be collected. Therefore, this operation will be conducted through evidence and intel gathering.”

“Then what exactly is my job?”

“Your job is to tail and monitor the suspect. The actual work involving evidence collection will be handled by your team members, and Colonel, you just need to guide them in getting close to the target.”

Simply put, they would handle it themselves; they just needed my cooperation.

“How will you disguise yourselves?”

“I’ll pair up two team members from a similar region. You can pretend to be their senior or junior from the army.”

It was a plan to stretch out our identities as regional classmates.

Connections like academic, geographical, and familial ties proved to be effective truths in this world too.

“Your role is simple. Just keep an eye on the suspect, and the rest of the complicated stuff will be handled by the team.”

I double-checked with the team leader.

“Are they trustworthy?”

“Yes.”

That sounded like the best.

The team leader rummaged through a steel cabinet.

He dropped several thick files onto the desk and said to me, “These are the operation plan, personnel records, and the suspect’s dossier. Please read and return them when you’re done.”

Time to kick off the operation.

*

The most vital aspect of any operation is security.

Security isn’t simply about the success or failure of the operation; it directly relates to the lives of the operatives and operatives-in-charge.

In the ’90s, operatives conducting North Korea operations based in China and Japan were frequently monitored by the North Korean Ministry of State Security’s agents.

While operatives concealed their identities through thorough disguises, a few had their security compromised, leading to abduction or even assassination in the field.

There was no need to elaborate on what happened to the agents from the National Security Agency and the Intelligence Service who were taken to North Korea.

Those who knew could tell the story well.

To prevent such unfortunate incidents, every intelligence agency rigorously conceals agents’ identities from the beginning of operation preparations.

From that perspective, my assigned role was rather crucial.

I was a colleague of Camila Lowell, and Giada Bianchi was a senior researcher in the Biological Analysis Lab, involved in all her tests.

In other words, I was the only one available right now with access to the suspect among the military intelligence agency’s active assets.

Thus, I had to assist the counterintelligence agents in their disguises while leading them to Giada Bianchi, the prime suspect.

One slip-up would mean a disaster—a calamity, whether in life or in lifestyle.

“Why does a magician have to be a spy? They could’ve just lived a normal life…”

Quietly fuming at the unfortunate paperwork, I was not perturbed simply because I couldn’t take a vacation.

Most likely.

*Knock! Knock!*

I heard someone knocking. I hid the file behind the stack of papers and stood up.

“Come in.”

Then,

“At your service! Captain Aaron Gordon, and this is Sergeant Samuel.”

“Sergeant Samuel here, I’ve received the explanation from the team leader.”

“Pleasure to meet you. I’m Colonel Frederick Nostrim.”

And thus, the operation began.

 

---